<P>Astrocytes play diverse roles in central nervous system (CNS) function and dysfunction, and the connections that the astrocyte makes with other cells of the brain are essential for a variety of important neural tasks. This volume emphasizes cellular connections and surveys the most current findings on astrocyte activity. The book identifies major astrocyte biomarkers and describes how they define the different connectivity domains. It examines the role of these connections and explains how their function can be manipulated and how dysfunction of the connectivity leads to aberrant brain performance. The final section explores the alterations of glia that have been observed in specific diseases of the brain. </P>
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